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November 1st Day of the Dead. My ancestors are at the gate, dressed in heavy winter coats with a dusting of snow on the collar. The air smells of ancient Russian pine forests and clean running streams. I coax them in with salted peanuts and vodka, small offerings on my altar. November 1st. The clock … Continue reading day of the dead

It’s no secret that my mother and I had a difficult relationship. It had been years since we lived closer than three thousand miles. We had seen each other at best twice a year, so when she called me years ago on Yom Kippur, I let the answering machine pick up the call. “It’s your … Continue reading Atonement

It’s no secret that my mother and I had a difficult relationship. It had been years since we lived closer than three thousand miles. We had seen each other at best twice a year, so when she called me years ago on Yom Kippur, I let the answering machine pick up the call. “It’s your … Continue reading Atonement

I am in a labyrinth with a seashell pressed to my ear. I am sand flowing through the hourglass. I am my great-grandmother in a burning village wailing for her daughter, her beloved, who is safe in the new country. The flames are coming closer and I see. I see she is folding an origami … Continue reading time and the labyrinth

I was the girl all in white with a flower tucked behind my ear sitting at the feet of a guru. She gave me a new name, a secret name which roughly translated as voice of the mother. This was disturbing. My mother’s voice was the last voice I’d want coming out of my mouth, … Continue reading voice